Nokia 5800 XpressMusic Review

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(More customer reviews)I've had my XpressMusic for a few months now. I bought it because I wanted a smartphone. Rather than trying to fit myself to the iPhone crowd, I did research to find a phone that fits me. I'd read about the 5800 being touted as an "iPhone Killer", but such talk is silly simply because the XpressMusic isn't the same animal nor does Nokia bring enough to the table to even come close to Apple's market saturation and "Joe & Jane user" appeal.
The Nokia 5800 XpressMusic is an excellent phone for people who love media: it's got a browser for streaming, easy-to-use software for transfers of your own files, and it even has a built-in FM radio for listening to local stations (with the added bonus of being able to tag and label them). The screen is approximately the size of the screen on a Nintendo DS or a Sony PSP, with the difference being that colors are bright, resolution is sharp, and the backlight is superior. Power button, standard headphone adapter, charge plug and USB connector are all on the top, making it easy to access but conveniently out of the way. The touch screen is unlocked via a rocker key on the side, and volume can easily be adjusted up or down along the same edge.
In addition to this, you can expect all the same features you find in most smartphones today: GIS-driven mapping systems, Internet connectivity via WiFi (if, like me, you're not on an unlimited data plan), a multitude of Bluetooth capabilities, integration with a PC or Mac via the USB Cable, and of course a digital camera that takes good (but not great) pictures and video. One nice extra here is that if you hold the phone like a camera, a button on top will quickly switch the phone to camera mode and also double as your auto-focus and picture-taking button.
I like the feel of this phone, and I definitely like the clarity and strength of the calls. There are times when it appears that I have only one bar, but still can place clear and noise-free calls that don't disconnect. The software is regularly kept up to date, and once you get through the process of setting up an account at the Ovi Store, it is remarkably easy to download and install applications, many of which are free (but only some of which are useful).
The one big drawback--and it is a serious one--is the interface. Features and Applications are in two separate sections, and sometimes the dividing line between which is which is not exactly clear. The auto-rotate that switches from Portrait to Landscape can go off at the slightest of bumps, and I have to shake the phone and wait for it to re-set. I bought the phone because I wanted a good, solid handwriting device, and this is where I have been most disappointed. Despite being a whiz at PDAs, despite training (and re-training) the phone to my handwriting, I get many botched translations. I have to force myself to scribe slowly because the delay time between reading my strokes and rendering a character is noticeably long. I have to patiently re-do most of my strokes over and over. To give credit where credit is due, Nokia gives you a slim stylus cleverly hidden along the side of the phone, and then they throw in a hip little gadget called a "plectrum": it's a triangular guitar-pick that makes a handy substitute for a fingernail--consider this for pointing and clicking and the stylus for handwriting.
There is, however, one sin that seems unforgivable, and I'm surprised that a year and a half down the road, the updates still haven't addressed it:
The phone dialer has no letters on it.
Let me rewind that: if you call up the dialer in other areas of the phone (such as via contacts), you will see the letters imprinted on the dial pad. However, if you want to dial a number with letters in it (say, "1-800-FLOWERS"), you are out of luck: the dialer shown when dialing the phone does not display any letters. The fact that the letters are imprinted elsewhere in the system, but not where they are most important, is what makes the lack of this "fix" annoying.
Also, while the software is easy to use, it is also incredibly slow and buggy in Windows Vista or Windows 7. The interface often turns black and I have to scrub my mouse over the window to re-draw my menus and panels.
If you really like media and want a phone for music, pictures, and video, the 5800 XpressMusic is not bad. However, if you're looking for a pocket-sized computer that can do whiz-kid propeller-head tricks, the 5800XpressMusic will most likely disappoint, especially given its price. As much as I appreciate what Nokia was trying to do with this phone, it really wasn't significantly different from my Motorola RAZR.
NOTE: I cannot confirm that this is true of all Nokia 5800 XpressMusic phones, but the "USA" Phone that was shipped to me contained a European power adapter. This huge chunk of plastic contains a converter to allow it to plug into US electrical outlets, but it also means that your charger is anything but pocket-sized. I sent mine in for a replacement, only to discover that the replacement also contained the same "Euro-plus-converter-widget" charger.

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